Thursday, January 30, 2014

These burgers are adapted from a Gordon Ramsay recipe. He adds loads of different fresh green herbs, but I just used what was in the house....which happened to be a block of haloumi cheese! It had been laying in the fridge for two months I think. So it was a perfect opportunity to give it a try.

for two burgers, I grated :

- haloumi cheese (appromimately 100 grams)

- zucchini (same amount, by volume)

- carrot (same amount, by volume)

It's important to use the same (course) grater on all three ingredients!

The grated carrot and zucchini go into a colander. Sprinkle them with salt and give it some time (5-10 minutes).

In the mean time, cut:

- 1 or 2 spring onions

- half a red pepper

-a piece of ginger

The red pepper and ginger go into a little bowl, sprinkle them with a bit of salt and sugar, then add rice wine vinegar and a bit of olive oil...give it a stir.

Now it's time to squeeze every last drop of liquid out of the carrot and zucchini...use both of your hands and make sure it's as dry as it can be, otherwise the burgers will fall apart.

When you're done, add the veggies to the grated haloumi, give it a quick stir,

then add:

- 1 whisked egg

- about 3 tablespoons of breadcrumbs

Mix this up well and shape it into 2 burger patties.

Put it in your fridge for half an hour, so the patties get a little bit firmer before baking.

After that, drizzle some oil in a pan, gently add the patties and bake them on medium heat until both sides are a nice golden brown.

After plating them, scoop some of the red pepper and ginger out of the bowl (not the liquid) and lay it on top of the burgers for an extra kick.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Yes, yes, you should make the gnocchi yourself…it's quick
and it's easy and it's SO much better

than store bought gnocchi!

But I cannot be bothered today, so:

-gnocchi di patate (200 grams per person)

-tomato sauce with basilicum (or add fresh
basilicum leaves)

-diced onion

-mozzarella

-grana padano

-bouillon cube

-thyme

-salt

-pepper

-oil

Cook the gnocchi in water with a bouillon cube or salt as
per the instructions on the package.

Add oil to the pan and add the gnocchi when they're done,
stir and let them brown a little….

when they look good, bake the onions on medium heat for a couple of minutes.

Then add some tomato sauce… it should be a generous amount,
but you do not want your gnocchi to swim in the sauce. Add a liberal amount of
pepper and salt to taste. Also other herbs like fresh basilicum or thyme could
be added at this point, just taste it and make it how you want.

When it's all good to go, scoop the gnocchi in tomatosauce
into an oven-safe bowl. Almost cover the surface with a couple of mozzarella
slices and grate some grana padano over
the dish before sliding the whole thing into the oven for 10 to 15 minutes at
200 C (or 400 F)

(keep an eye on it; the whole dish is done, so you can pull the bowl from the
oven when the cheese is looking good!)

Bake the onion in the olive oil until translucent (4
minutes), then add the red pepper, garlic and ginger. Half a minute after that,
add the red curry paste and give it a good stir, warm it up so you can smell it
well. Then add the coconutmilk, the bouillon cube and the water. Let it all simmer for
a while (10 minutes) before you add the egg noodles and boil them as instructed
on the package.

In the mean time, slice the carrot and bell pepper in thin
strips and and thinly slice the scallions.

Fill a bowl with the soup and arrange the fresh vegetables in the bowl

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

If you don't feel like cooking, this easy vegetarian quesadilla recipe might come in handy.

-2 large tortilla wraps

-grated cheddar cheese

-1 red bell pepper

-1/2 green bell pepper

-1/2 yellow bell pepper

-2 red onions

-3 tablespoons of olive oil

-1 teaspoon of corn starch

-1 teaspoon of chilipowder

-1 teaspoon of paprika powder

-½ teaspoon of oregano

-½ teaspoon of black pepper

-½ teaspoon of salt

Preheat the oven to 400F. Cut the bell peppers and onions in
strips and half rings. Place them in a large caserole dish. Mix up al the herbs
and spices well and sprinkle the mixture over the vegetables. Add the olive oil
and mix it all with your hands so everything is coated with the oil and spice
mixture.

Place the casserole dish in the oven for 30 minutes (give the vegetables a stir
half way through).

When the bell peppers and onions are done, heat a pan on the
stove. Place a tortilla wrap in it, add some grated cheddar cheese on one half
of the wrap, then some of the pepper/onion mixture and finally another layer of
cheddar cheese. Fold the tortilla wrap in half and bake both sides on medium
heat until the cheese has melted.

If you have more time, this can be upgraded by adding/making
one or all of the following:

Kurkuma and currypowder can totally transform the average hummus recipe.

And just like 'normal' hummus, it can be made in 5 minutes

with the help of a (small) food processor.- 1 small can of chickpeas-1/5 teaspoon of (hot) currypowder- 1/2 teaspoon kurkuma (turmeric)- 1/5 teaspoon djinten (cuminpowder)- half a spanish pepper- 1/4 clove of garlic- 1 tablespoon of tahini- bit of lemonjuice- salt- pepper- olive oil- a bit of waterchop the chickpeas in the foodprocessor, add everything else andand process until well blended.In the end, slowly add some water and oil until you reach the right consistancy.Taste and adjust if necessary

In the picture, a nice Tuscan olive oil and a sprinkle of sumac was added to the hummus,